Nebraska Army National Guard helping again with hurricane recovery

Nebraska National Guard members prepare a UH-72 Lakota helicopter for deployment Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017. Personnel from Company A, 1-376th Aviation (Security and Support) from the Nebraska National Guard air base in Lincoln are assisting with Hurricane Irma relief and recovery operations in Florida.(photos by Tech. Sgt. Jason Melton, Nebraska National Guard)

The Nebraska National Guard is assisting with hurricane relief operations again, this time in Florida.

Four Nebraska Army National Guard (NANG) helicopters and approximately 100 Soldiers assigned to a NANG aviation battalion were mobilized in support of the Hurricane Irma relief operations.

The UH-72 Lakota helicopters and 12 Soldiers from the Lincoln-based Company A, 1-376th Aviation (Security and Support) are equipped and trained to conduct search and rescue operations, air movement missions, and aerial damage assessments.

They will soon be joined by additional Soldiers from the unit.

The battalion, which is based in both Lincoln and Grand Island, is expected to serve as an aviation task force headquarters in central and northern Florida.

“The Nebraska National Guard is proud to support our neighbors to the south with these important capabilities,” said Maj. Gen. Daryl Bohac, Nebraska adjutant general, in a news release. “Just as we did in Texas, members of the Nebraska National Guard stand ready and able to do what we have always done, support our fellow Americans during times of natural disaster. We also thank the families and civilian employers of our deploying National Guardsmen as they deploy in response to this natural disaster.”